Writer Extradited Over Tweets on Prophet Mohammed
Malaysian authorities extradited Saudi writer Hamza Kashgari back to Saudi Arabia Sunday on a warrant for his arrest over statements he made on Twitter.
“Saudi media said Hamza made a posting on the Prophet Mohammed’s birthday celebration last week, implying that he was interacting with the prophet, as if they were equal status,” Malaysia’s state news agency said.
The tweets have been removed.
Kashgari was deported Sunday morning, said Ramli Yoosuf, a spokesman for the Royal Malaysian Police. “The Saudi Arabian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur had arranged for his deportation.”
After speaking with an immigration official, Kashgari’s lawyer Muhammad Afiq Bin Mohammad Noor confirmed that his client was taken at 10 a.m. local time on a Saudi jet.
Noor said he was granted an interim court order on Sunday afternoon to prevent officials from deporting Kashgari, but it came too late.